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Mugabe to return farms to whites

Zim Online

Fri 21 April
2006

HARARE - The Zimbabwe government plans to take back land from
close to 2 000 black owners who have failed to farm and return it to whites,
State Security Minister Didymus Mutasa has said.

In a major
policy reversal and the clearest admission yet by the Harare government that
its controversial land redistribution programme failed, Mutasa said that the
government had asked the white-member Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) to
submit names of applicants to receive land repossessed from
blacks.

Mutasa, who spoke to ZimOnline earlier this week on
Tuesday, said: "We have set up land identification committees countrywide
working at a provincial level.

"Figures coming from provinces
indicate that there is still a lot of under-utilised land. Some people are
not farming at all and we will take away this land. In some provinces, like
Manicaland 200 farmers will lose their land to new
owners."

Mutasa, a trusted confidante of President
Robert Mugabe and who oversees land reform and food aid distribution on top
of minding state security, said he and other government ministers had held
meetings with the CFU leadership in the past weeks, adding that the white
union now appreciated the government's land policy.

He said the
government wanted to boost farm production and end hunger in the country but
some blacks allocated land had failed the government by failing to produce
food. Whites will be brought back to revive food production but more blacks
willing to farm would also get land, Mutasa said.

Mutasa said: "We
have held fruitful meetings with them (CFU leadership). They now seem to
have a clear way forward and understanding on how to work with this
government and we are happy with that.

"It was in this vein that we
asked them to submit applications for land and these will be treated
favourably. They are Zimbabweans like everyone else."

CFU
vice-president Trevor Gifford confirmed his organisation had held talks with
the government and had submitted names of former white farmers wishing to be
allocated land by the government.

Gifford said: "We have been
talking to Honourable Mutasa and other ministers over the future of
agriculture in this country.

"In fact, we have just submitted to
the government 200 applications for land from our members, and in the spirit
of the talks we hope the applications will be treated favourably .. we could
soon have our members farming again soon."

Mugabe and his
government have over the last six years chased away virtually all of
Zimbabwe's 4 000 white farmers and gave their land to blacks in what Mugabe
said was a correction of a colonial land tenure system that unfairly
allocated all the best land to whites while blacks were cramped in poor arid
regions.

The farm seizures however destabilised the mainstay
agricultural sector, plunging the economy further into the mire, while food
production plummeted, leaving the once food self-sufficient southern African
country dependent on handouts from international donors.

For
example, a quarter of the 12 million Zimbabweans require food aid this year
and food relief groups say millions more will require help in the 2006/2007
period.

But Harare had until now insisted it would never go back on
its controversial land reforms. - ZimOnline

Wayward policies will torpedo Mugabe's economic recovery
plans

Zim Online

Fri 21 April 2006

HARARE - Zimbabwe's latest drive to
revive an economy teetering on the brink of meltdown is bound to fail as
President Robert Mugabe defiantly pursues economic policies that have put
the country at cross-paths with the global community, analysts said
yesterday.

Zimbabwe officials this week launched a National
Economic Development Priority Programme - a brainchild of a Communist-style
committee chaired by Mugabe - which it said would see a reversal of an
eight-year recession within 6-9 months.

But analysts - who
spoke as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) called on Mugabe's government
to change economic course and governance style - doubted the success of yet
another blue-print, saying the government was skirting the root cause of
Zimbabwe's crisis by tinkering with peripheral issues.

"It is a
big set of promises, some of which are outrageous," said John Robertson, a
Harare-based economic consultant. "It is not the right course that we are
taking, we know the problems that we need to address."

Zimbabwe,
once touted as a shining beacon and a model economy for black Africa, is
fighting its most crippling economic crisis to date, which has been worsened
by the withdrawal of international support over policy differences with
Harare such as its forcible seizure of white-owned commercial farms for
blacks.

Analysts were
sceptical of the latest economic revival plan, which the government said was
crafted with industry's input.

They pointed to the consistent
failure by the government and central bank to meet growth and inflation
targets and said there were no guarantees the latest drive would pull the
country from its punishing crisis that has angered the majority, whose
incomes continue to be eroded everyday.

The revival initiative
would see inflows of US$2.5 billion flowing into Zimbabwe "either in cash or
in the form of investments" within the next 90 days, the government
said.

Analysts said the blue-print lacks detail on actual growth
and inflation targets and does not say where the government will get
resources to support its bid to turn around the economy.

"There
is no one who will bring that kind of money or investment when there are no
guarantees of the sanctity of property rights," James Jowa an economist with
a Harare financial services house said. "In one breath the government says
it is not apologetic for its actions and on the other you say you want to
mend relations, it is confusing," he said.

IMF head Rodrigo Rato
told journalists in Washington that nothing short of a complete change of
course "both in macroeconomic terms and also in the respect of plurality and
human rights and governance", was needed to pull back Zimbabwe from the
brink.

The IMF cut financial assistance to Harare in 1999 after
disagreeing with Harare on fiscal policy and other governance issues. Rato
said help would remain frozen despite Harare paying off a huge portion of
its debt to the multilateral institution.

Economic experts see
little prospects of economic recovery in Zimbabwe without significant help
from the IMF.

Mugabe's government has clashed with the West not
only over his controversial land reforms, but also over charges that his
ruling ZANU-PF party has rigged key elections since 2000 and violated human
rights, earning the country the title of an "outpost of tyranny" by
Condoleeza Rice, United States Secretary of State.

The veteran
leader again rattled investors by backing controversial government plans to
take over 51 percent of foreign-owned mines. Mining is one of the few
remaining sectors with a large share of foreign investors.

Robertson was critical of the government blue-print saying it put emphasis
on the setting up of committees to preside over recovery instead of focusing
on real projections which the government would be measured against.

"You don't create growth by starting committees. What we need is to build
factories to create employment and restore confidence in the economy then we
can talk of a turnaround," he said.

Mugabe has predicted Zimbabwe's
economy will grow by between 1-2 percent, the first time since 1999 but
analysts predict the economy, which has shrunk 40 percent since then mainly
due to a slump in the key agriculture sector, will contract again in
2006.

Zimbabwe has forged ties with China after falling out with
the West but there has been little investment coming from the Asian giant.
Instead tourist arrivals have fallen 70 percent from Asia, as the
government's "Look East" policy wobbles.

"Even China will not
bring its money without a guarantee of return on investment. I suspect they
(Chinese) are interested in the mining sector but there is a danger of
breaching existing agreements signed with other companies especially from
South Africa," a Harare banker who declined to be named told
ZimOnline.

The government has hinted it wanted to take part of
platinum claims owned by Zimbabwe Platinum Mines, a subsidiary of South
Africa's Impala Holdings, and industry officials say China is the likely
recipient. - ZimOnline.

IMF demands reforms from Harare

Zim Online

Fri 21 April
2006

HARARE - The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Rodrigo Rato said yesterday President Robert Mugabe's government needed to
change its economic course and the way it is governing the southern Africa
nation.

The IMF has been critical of Harare's policies and has
stopped lending to the country over controversial policies such as the
seizures of land from white commercial farmers, which critics say has led to
a plunge in agriculture and food shortages.

Rato, who was
addressing journalists in Washington said the multilateral lender was still
concerned over Zimbabwe's future.

"We are really engaged in the
future of Zimbabwe and we have been advising the authorities of Zimbabwe to
change their course, both in macroeconomic terms and also in the respect of
plurality and human rights and governance," Rato told a press
conference.

Rato said Zimbabwe was for a long period in arrears on
loan repayments to the Fund and that is why its voting rights at the Fund
had been suspended.

Harare last month accused the IMF of being
hijacked by Washington and London to continue suspending its voting rights
despite having cleared a critical account that had seen the country being
faced with expulsion.

"Those arrears have been cleared but also
there are issues right now regarding the consistency of data and we are
working on that," Rato said.

Zimbabwe is in the throes of its worst
economic crisis that has been worsened by the withdrawal of international
support mainly over Harare's controversial policies.

The
meltdown has shown in chronic shortages of food, foreign exchange and fuel,
surging unemployment and the world's highest rate of inflation at 913.6
percent.

The government this week launched a drive to revive the
economy and expects inflows of US$2.5 billion "either in cash or in the form
of investments" within the next 90 days.

But analysts have been
sceptical about Zimbabwe's prospects and say the economy, which has
contracted by 40 percent in the last eight years, is likely to shrink
further in 2006. - ZimOnline

Zim farms with grown crops seized

President Robert Mugabe's
militant supporters have invaded and seized five farms with grown crops
owned by mostly South African investors in south-eastern Zimbabwe, farmers
report.

Farmers confirmed reports that the farms had
ready-to-harvest crops, mainly sugar cane. They say the occupation and
seizures are in line with a new method of seizure by Mugabe supporters
whereby they target farms that have mature crops.

They move in
to harvest and sell the crops and equipment before abandoning the properties
and leaving former owners virtually bankrupt.

The affected South
Africans have since written a joint letter to the South African High
Commission in Harare seeking help. They complain that they were about to
start harvesting their sugar crop in time for the milling
season.

In a letter to Willem Geerlings, first secretary at the
SA embassy, which was copied to the Commercial Farmers Union and published
in the Zimbabwean press, the farmers detailed the harassment they had
suffered at the hands of government supporters.

"Today, April
11, 2006, the Chiredzi lands officer, Mukonyora, and Guruvheti arrived on
the farm to inform Wayne Petzer that the remainder of (his) farm has been
taken over and that he has 30 days to get off," reads the
letter.

"The lands officer and a new A2 farmer (called) Jambaya
then walked around the homestead and stated that Petzer could cut one block
of cane (about 5ha) and then the rest will be taken by them."

A
farmer from the area interviewed last night said it was obvious that
government supporters wanted to reap where they had not sown.

No comment could be obtained from the South African High Commission last
night.

a.. British Prime Minister Tony Blair has launched a
strongly worded attack on President Robert Mugabe, calling his regime a
"disgrace" that had brought the country to its knees, reports
Sapa-AFP.

"What the regime is doing in Zimbabwe is a disgrace,"
Blair told parliament in his weekly question and answer session yesterday
when asked why Western governments appeared powerless to prevent human
tragedy in the country.

"While Zimbabwe remains as it is, it
casts a shadow over that whole part of southern Africa and it is a tragedy
for the people concerned."

Soldiers unleashed on
Matebeleland

zimbabwejournalists.com

By Magugu Nyathi

JOHANNESBURG-President Robert Mugabe's regime has deployed soldiers in rural
Matabeleland to brutally assault rural people and confiscating their maize
harvests. The move is apparently meant to force them to vote for ZANU PF in
the forthcoming local government elections in September. A report by
Solidarity Peace Trust on operation Taguta / Sisuthi/ Eat well: Command
Agriculture in Zimbabwe, which was launched by the government late last
year, suggests continued excesses by the army.

Bishop Rubin Philip
of the Trust said at the launch of their latest report: "Deploying of the
army under the guise of Command Agriculture means that army units are now
embedded deep in rural areas. This effectively closing democratic space and
will have a repressive impact during Rural District Council election due in
September. It is likely that the army will stay and increase in numbers in
rural areas," said Bishop Phillip. Zanu PF regime is deploying army
personal to take charge of food distribution in order to suppress rural
through disrupting the farming in communal areas. The army is accused in
Matabeleland for bringing down once well utilized irrigation to its knees.
They are said to have taken custody of early maize harvest in one scheme,
where inputs were made well before the arrival of the army. The
report, which was authored by Bishop Phillip of Kwazulu Natal and Bishop
Kevin Dowling who traveled to Zimbabwe recently, assesses the impact of
"Command Agriculture on rural communities in Matabeleland". It paints a
sorry and sad picture as soldiers are wantonly and systematically destroying
lucrative markets gardens and seizing people yields. Matabeleland is viewed
by the Mugabe regime as the stronghold of the opposition and there the
government doesn't care about that region. "In Matabeleland,
soldiers beating people in the field and withholding food is reminiscent of
the great food curfew of 1984 in the Gukurahundi era. During 1984, 400 000
people were deliberately brought to brink of starvation by 5 Brigade. This
presence of soldiers has disrupted the social fabric and left people angry
and afraid. "Some comments by senior govt officials recently suggest
that they are not only intending to forcibly acquire not just harvest from
irrigation schemes but also from rural farmers who have good harvest.
Therefore there is need foe the world to prevent what would amount to
confiscation of crops in exchange of pittance," read part of the
report. It was noted that Mugabe regime does not pay any attention to
international advice and assistance. The government rebuffed the
humanitarian assistance offered by United Nations after Operation
Murambatsvina. "Government is hostile to international donors and
army and uniformed forces continue to benefit from Operation Garikayi," said
Bishop Phillip. Bishop Dowling said people are living in fear because
of soldier's brutality in the rural areas and also stressed that they had
difficulties in getting information from people as the soldiers are stamping
authority. It also reveals that soldiers are sexually abusing school
children in the rural areas exposing them to HIV/AIDS. Reverend
Nicholas Mukaronda the Co-ordinator for Crisis Zimbabwe-SA office said,
"Since 2000 people have been raising the issue of soldiers involvements in
food distribution. The report shows clearly that the state is at war with
its own people. Zimbabwe has turned out to a refugee producing country. It
is naďve to think that the Mugabe regime is not aware that the crises are
out of hand. This might be a Zimbabwean problem but it is the entirety of
humanity that suffers at the end of the day." The army is regularly
used by Mugabe to suppress any dissenting voices in the country by brutally
assaulting people. During 2002 Presidential election they were deployed in
townships to quarrel any uprisings. "The Zimbabwe govt has developed a
liking for terming all its large -scale policies in language more associated
with Military. It is the military that undertakes "Operations" not farmers
or municipalities and its is no coincidence as the uniformed forces were
intimately involved in the past "Operations". The report goes on to
reveal that Command Agriculture has been a failure in 2005/6 season in
relation to improve the maize production at rural irrigation schemes in
Matabeland as it has undermined such production and has extremely negative
effect on the community at large. "It has instead destroyed self
-sufficient in rural population and created vulnerability through dependency
on government as the only source of food, Command Agriculture is likely to
prove a resounding "success"."

The life of a critical writer, or
journalist, in Zimbabwe

Chenjerai Hove, who now lives
in Norway, shares his experiences with the secret police in
Zimbabwe.

By Chenjerai Hove

READING Bill
Saidi's story made me both cry and laugh. How can our experiences be so
similar: the same tricks, the same kind of security officials, and the same
crimes?

One Friday afternoon, in 2001, I was playing snooker, my
favourite game then, at Queensdale Sports Club, with friends and foes,
enjoying a stream of political jokes as usual. And the drinks were flowing,
with erratic supplies of our favourite braai of juicy pieces of pork and
beef.

The economy was struggling already, but still staggering
ahead on shaky feet, hence the drinks and the subdued joy. Then around 4.15
on that Friday afternoon, a Defender CID truck with civilian number plates
came to a halt in the club car park. I did not see them arrive as I had gone
to the other side of the club hall to play table tennis. The waiter on duty
came rushing to me:

"Mr Hove, there are people who urgently
want to see you in the entrance area," he said, his face shrunken with a
turbulent kind of suppressed fear.

"Did they say who they are?"
I asked, wondering if it were another group of relatives coming to inform me
of another AIDS-related death. Such deaths are so many in Zimbabwe it is
rare to pass a single day without a close relative departing that
way.

"No, but they......", he did not know how to finish. I walked
to the entrance area, rather shaken already. Standing in the doorway were
two men in plainclothes. On introducing myself, they quickly produced their
identity cards and waved them into my eyes.

"We are detectives
from the CID Airport Depot," the senior of the two said. The other two
officers were standing beside their car parked outside, apparently waiting
for action. I could see the guns tucked openly on their waist
belts.

Now almost exploding with fear, I said: "Gentlemen? Is
anything wrong?" "You are under arrest for attempting to smuggle 23.5
kilogrammes of marijuana to Botswana via the Plumtree border post. You and
your two fellow smugglers jumped out of the car and escaped into the forest
on seeing a police road block a few metres ahead of you. The car's
registration number is 326-518K, and it is a Datsun 140Y yellow station
wagon," the Chief Inspector concluded the charges.

"But, I have
never been to Plumtree in my life," I said. 'And the only car I have is the
one you saw at my house," I pleaded, having been told by them that they had
first gone to my house and were directed to the Club. "In addition, I
do not even know how to roll a cigarette of any kind, let alone export
marijuana," I continued, almost resigned to my fate: a filthy prison
cell.

As it happened, I had once upon a time, owned a car with the
same registration numbers, a Datsun 140Y sedan, yellow. On telling them that
I had sold that car, a sedan, not a station wagon, five years before, they
were adamant that I could argue that in court Tuesday the following week.
They had to take me with them. Then an idea clicked in my mind. I had sold
the car through a registered garage, so I pleaded with them to
phone the owner of the garage using my cell phone, to check the name of the
person who had bought my car then. I did not even know the man since every
transaction was done through the garage as my authorised
representative.

Fortunately, the owner of the garage was still at
work, and he was willing to meet with the detectives and give them all the
details of the Kwekwe man who had bought the car, a yellow sedan, not a
station wagon.

The Chief Inspector stepped forward and shook my
hand, looked straight into my eyes and said: "You are a lucky old man. We
had instructions to lock you up for the weekend. But your story is
convincing. We will confirm everything with the garage owner," he said,
sitting down before asking if he could be allowed to buy a few beers for
himself and his team.

Sitting down with the four of my possible
jailers, I became relaxed enough to ask where the 'instructions' to arrest
me had come from. They just laughed and warmed me to 'be
careful.'

But before this incident, I had experienced a serious
hit-and-run accident at the corner of Fourth Street and Samora Machel. I had
been returning from a literary awards ceremony at the Oasis Hotel. A friend
had asked to be dropped at a flat near Specis College. And the accident
happened as I, with three other writers, southwards along Fourth. With
traffic lights perfectly green on my side, we chatted and entered the
intersection. And the big bang came, like an explosion. Fortunately, my car
did not roll over because of the weight of the four passengers. No one was
hurt, and but hit-and run-driver had dropped the front number plates of his
car, a BMW.

The accident happened at 21.30 just a few minutes walk
from the central police station and we telephoned to report it to the police
soon after. We waited for nearly three hours without any police officer
turning up. My car was not too badly damaged, so we were able to start it
and drive to the Central Police Station.

The police officer in
charge that night insisted on keeping the number plate. But I refused and
took it home. I had it properly hung in my lounge as a souvenir. For three
months the police were failing to find the owner of the hit-and-run car
despite the computerised Central Vehicle Registry data bank.

Coincidentally, the number plate disappeared one night after a burglary in
which no door or window was forced open at my house.

Coincidentally
as well, after the marijuana incident, another break-in resulted in my
cell-phone and other electrical gudgets disappearing. I had heard them
forcing the door, and so they were not able to take much.

After
claiming to have no transport to come to take fingerprints and investigate,
I went to fetch them, only to be told by one officer who looked at me,
identified me as 'the writer' before declaring that he thought 'the crime
looks political.'

Little did I know that the 'burglars' had not
finished their job. A few months after I had left the country, they came in
broad daylight, with careful planning and observation of the movements of
the occupants, to swiftly steal my computer hard disk drive, diskettes,
laptop and fax machine. Nothing else except 'communication
equipment.'

Knowing fully well that no one can touch them, the
agents of the Central Intelligence Organisation even boast about the various
ways in which they can make you disappear, especially after having an
abundance of alcoholic drinks at the express expense of the
taxpayers.

The life of a critical writer, or journalist, in
Zimbabwe, is full of coincidents, one after another. As for seemingly casual
death threats, I had stopped counting them after receiving the fiftieth
one or so. Thus I learnt hard and fast that some crimes in Zimbabwe are
simply 'political' and no amount of investigation will ever lead to an
arrest.

Zimbabwe opposition dismisses Mugabe threats

Reuters

20
Apr 2006 13:24:03 GMT

Source: Reuters

By MacDonald
Dzirutwe

HARARE, April 20 (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's main opposition party
vowed on Thursday to press ahead with mass protests against President Robert
Mugabe, saying it would not be cowed by his threats to crush the
demonstrations.

"We are unmoved by the ramblings of an 82-year-old
geriatric," Tendai Biti, the Movement for Democratic Change's
secretary-general, told Reuters.

"We are not deviating from the course we
have taken."

MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai, whose party has come closest
to unseating Mugabe at the polls, last month threatened a campaign of
peaceful mass protests, prompting warnings from the veteran leader that the
MDC was "dicing with death".

MDC officials said anti-Mugabe protests
were still on, and that Tsvangirai would address weekend rallies in Harare
and the eastern border city of Mutare to mobilise support for the drive,
which comes as Zimbabwe teeters on the brink of economic
meltdown.

Political and economic analysts say rising prices of basic
foodstuffs, public transport and housing is stoking anger in an urban
population already struggling with breaking sewerage systems, water and
electricity cuts, uncollected garbage and roads riddled with
potholes.

But they say the MDC still needs to shore up support for a
unified stand against Mugabe's forces, with the military, police and
security agencies still believed to be firmly behind the longtime president.
"Zimbabweans are increasingly moving away from collective action in
preference for individual action to solve their problems, so they need to be
convinced to buy into the MDC programme," said leading political analyst
Heneri Dzinotyiwei.

Previous MDC protests have been met with tough
tactics by Mugabe's security forces, the last being in June 2002 dubbed
"final push" to drive Mugabe from power. It failed and led to Tsvangirai's
arrest on treason charges.

The opposition has not given a timetable for
new protests but Tsvangirai told supporters at a congress last month they
should save money and stock up food ahead of a "cold season of peaceful
democratic resistance".

"There has never been a revolution with a
time-table but it is the pressure on the ground and the momentum from
congress that will determine when such action will start," said MDC
spokesman Nelson Chamisa.

Political analysts say the MDC was keeping
information on demonstrations to a minimum to keep the government
guessing.

"The are probably keeping their plans close to their chest
maybe because they are borrowing from the military strategy of a surprise
attack," said Eldred Masunungure, chairman of the political science
department at the University of Zimbabwe.

Tsvangirai, who has led the
MDC since its formation in 1999, has been constantly outmanoeuvred by Mugabe
but analysts say he has emerged from his party's recent split intent on
taking the battle to the veteran leader.

On Wednesday, a rebel MDC
faction which this year formally broke ranks with Tsvangirai over how to
tackle Mugabe's ZANU-PF, announced its chairman had joined three other
senior officials who quit and defected to Tsvangirai's camp

Church leader's vision
of new dawn for Zimbabwe draws cheers

Ecumenical News International

19 April 2006

David WanlessBulawayo, Zimbabwe
(ENI). For a visitor to the country, or the consumer of news reports, the
numbers in Zimbabwe are staggering and depressing, whether they relate to
the economy, inflation, or HIV infection. But some Christians in the
southern African country, which this week celebrated 26 years of
independence, still believe there is reason to hope.On a recent weekend,
when the funeral of liberation struggle hero James Chikerema was carried
live on national television, workers in an old-age home in the eastern city
of Mutare were shown on state TV striking in a protest against a monthly
wage of 1.8 million Zimbabwe dollars (US$18).

Chikerema was a cousin of
President Robert Mugabe and raised at the same Roman Catholic mission but
his criticism of the Zimbabwean leader was said to have denied him a burial
at Heroes Acre, a resting spot for those in the ruling party's faithful who
fought for liberation. "It is not everybody who qualifies to be buried at
the Heroes," said Mugabe in a statement in the government-run Herald
newspaper.

Zimbabwe's Central Statistical Office reported on 7 April that
inflation for March had climbed to 913 per cent, the highest in the world,
according to the International Monetary Fund. Trade Union leader Collin
Gwiyo was reported by Agence France-Presse as saying the average worker
would need 25-30 million Zimbabwe dollars (US$253-302) a month to make ends
meet.

There are other signs of an economy that is estimated to have
shrunk by up to 40 per cent in the past five years. Because they cannot
afford the bus or taxi fare, hundreds of people can be seen walking to work
- or in search of it. Filling stations rarely have petrol and many have an
abandoned look. Supermarket shelves are often without stocks of staples such
as maize, rice, sugar and cooking oil in a country that was once considered
the breadbasket of Africa.

But you can buy a medium-sized slab of
chocolate for 450 000 Zimbabwe dollars. On Sunday afternoon, minibus taxis
full of football fans returning noisily from a match won by a local team,
give an impression that normal life goes on.

One church leader told
Ecumenical News International that the bags of maize seen on sale at a
roadside stall in a suburb of Bulawayo were probably obtained by corrupt
means and the price mark-up put their purchase beyond the reach of the
ordinary citizen.

Other Zimbabwean numbers seem even more depressing.
Although the HIV infection rate has reportedly declined slightly, the World
Health Organization has stated that because of the pandemic and the
breakdown in health services, average life expectancy for Zimbabweans in
2006 has dropped to 36 years, making it the world's lowest.

Still, at
church services in Zimbabwe's second city on 2 April, Passion Sunday,
worshippers who spoke to ENI said they believed that God would bring change
and improvement to their lives. Deacon Agnes Saymani, the lay leader of a
congregation that meets in the open air while it struggles to raise funds
for a church building said: "When we have faith in God, and work together,
our needs will be met."

Later, at an ecumenical service in the Njube
Congregational Church, after a march through the suburb to highlight the
stigmatisation of people with HIV and AIDS, factory manager Joseph Ndhlovu
said, "We face shortages of materials. Although most of our production is
exported and we have to surrender much of our foreign exchange to the
government, we somehow manage to keep production going and pay our workers
what we can."

Preaching at the service, the Rev. Prince Dibeela, a member
of the central committee of the World Council of Churches, likened the
hardships being experienced by Zimbabweans to those of the ancient
Israelites during their exile in Babylon, who lamented: "How can we sing the
Lord's song in a strange land?"

He drew parallels between the
political, economic and spiritual hardships experienced then and now, but
told the congregation that he shared their hope. His affirmation, "There
will be a new day in Zimbabwe," drew prolonged applause and ululation from
the congregation.

. Journalists and critics of the government can
face draconian action. The names of some of the people interviewed have been
changed for their own protection. Editors.

Zim vendors questioned

Zambia Naional Broadcasting Corporation

The
Immigration Department in Livingstone has rounded up and questioned 15
Zimbabwean nationals for trading illegally in the tourist Capital -
Livingstone.

Immigration Department Public Relations Officer Mulako
Mbangweta said the Zimbabweans were picked up, for trading on the streets of
Livingstone when their entry permits indicate that they were entering Zambia
as visitors.

Ms. Mbangweta said the Zimbabweans would be taken to
Zimbabwe for them to formalise their business entries into Zambia since they
are free to conduct cross border business under COMESA trade
agreements.

She however said the Zimbabwean traders should conduct their
businesses only in designated places and not on the streets.

The
Zimbabwean traders tell border officials that they are entering Zambia to
visit friends and relatives but once they enter they become street
vendors.

Statistics and Strategy

Eddie Cross Bulawayo, 20th April
2006

A friend sent me a table yesterday that sets out the
statistical situation as derived from the Governments own figures of our
economic performance since 1996. Why 1996? Because that was the year in
which our exports peaked and our GDP reached US$8,5 billion. The stats from
that year onwards simply nose dive.

Gross Domestic Product (the
usual measure of total economic output of a country) has declined
by almost 50 per cent. Income per capita has fallen from US$830 per person
to US$358 - a drop of nearly 60 per cent. Our GDP is now nearly 20 per cent
below the level of our GDP in 1980 - after 16 years of mandatory sanctions
and 8 years of civil war. Our GDP per capita now classifies us as a nation
of very poor people. If the average GDP per capita is at that level and we
still have some very wealthy people - goodness only knows what the incomes
of the bottom third of our population have become.

On Tuesday
our beloved State President told the nation that he was expecting growth of
1 to 2 per cent in 2006 and stated that this was due to a recovery in
agriculture. Well, the real news is that the figures issued by his own
Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank point to another year - the 7th in
a row, when the economy will decline by over 5 per cent. Every sector is
down on last year - including agriculture and we have just had the most
perfect farming season I can recall.

Pretty dismal reading. Of
course these are just the stark economic facts - they say nothing about the
rampant corruption, the erosion of living standards and the total
destruction of all forms of savings leaving pensioners in dire straits. Can
this go on - yes it can and if it does the consequences will be
catastrophic. Increasing movement of people across borders, rising levels of
internal displacement and a rapid decline in population due to increased
mortality and emigration.

There are three options -

1.
Leave things as they are, drift along and accept that there is little
we can do about the situation. Yesterday in the British Parliament Tony
Blair basically said just that - there was "little they could do to
influence matters". 2. Go the Mbeki route - engineer Mugabe's early
retirement, adopt amendment number 19 to the Lancaster House
constitution and allow Parliament to appoint his successor, extend the life
of this government to 2010 and create a fictional "government of national
unity" with some international (UN?) support. 3. Go down the road
chosen by the MDC - throw everything we have into a short
non-violent struggle to force Zanu to accept they have failed and cannot get
us back on the road to the future. Get them into a national conference and
there thrash out what to do about all our problems and set up a transitional
government that will take us to elections as soon as possible so that the
people can chose who will lead us out of the hole we are in at
present.

Quite clearly option one is simply suicide - we cannot
go on as we have been. To do so would reduce Zimbabwe to an impoverished
backwater with a few million people living at a level of about US$100 per
annum and virtually no future for anyone except a tiny political minority
who lived in great (feudal) wealth. Do not say it cannot happen -
it is happening in many countries and the global community simply does not
have the will (they have the means and the resources) to do anything about
matters until a real Sierra Leone or Rwanda type situation
happens.

I fume when I see the pictures of educated African
refugees in Europe, holding sit ins in Churches and marching on the streets
to protest their situation. They should be home in Somalia, in the Sudan
fighting for their rights as citizens and demanding performance from their
leaders. By fleeing the continent they not only bring shame on all of us who
live in Africa, but they make the situation in their countries more
hopeless. Stay and fight - for democracy, for human rights, for political
rights, for jobs and prosperity. These things do not come easily or
cheap.

Option two is being hatched as I write - but very soon its
architects will run into Robert Mugabe who is simply demanding that he be
allowed to complete his current term and is saying to anyone who will listen
- "I am ready to do four more years". It is a non-starter and thank goodness
(or Robert) because that solution would leave the Zimbabwean populace
in the hands of the same corrupt despotic collection of clowns that have
been responsible for the mess we are in now. It would do nothing to restore
the rule of law; it would not restore our basic freedoms and would not be
either legal or democratic.

So we are thrown back onto our own
resources and courage. Everyone I speak to says that we (Zimbabweans) do not
have what it takes to topple this dictatorship. This is not Bosnia, the
Philippines or Russia - Zimbabweans are simply too passive and compliant to
do what is required. One such commentator said to me today - you would be
better off launching the struggle in South Africa where you have two or
three million very angry Zimbabweans. Sure - that might be true; it is also
true that if those angry young men came back - we could probably sort out
the mafia here in short order. But that is not going to happen.

We have two more rallies this weekend - one in Mutare and another in
Harare. I am going to both because I want to see and sense the mood
of the people. My own view is that Zimbabweans are ready to do what
is needed and we need not fear the armed forces - they are as fed up as we
are. A business executive told me yesterday that these situations are often
like an eggshell - hard and impervious, until it cracks. Then it just
splinters and falls apart.

We are about to hit this egg hard -
the egghead is nervous and worried. He might well be because he has no
certainly that when this situation cracks open, that he will be able to
protect himself from a very angry and frustrated people. Remember East
Germany just before the wall came down - tough, strong and invincible, until
the egg cracked and then there was nowhere to go.

Fears for Zim cricket as Pakistan mulls on postponing one-dayers

By
Tichaona Sibanda 20 April 2006

Zimbabwe Cricket might be
forced to cancel their tour to Pakistan after cricket authorities there
signalled their unwillingness to host a depleted Zimbabwe side for a series
of one-day internationals later this year.

Zimbabwe were
scheduled to visit Pakistan for a test and one-day series in September, but
a players' strike forced the Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) to postpone all test
cricket until next February.

The ZC interim committee said it would
continue to play one-day internationals but not tests, due to the depleted
strength of the squad.

But Reuters reports that unhappy with the
situation, a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) official told them that a letter
had been sent to the ZC asking them to arrange a full test and one-day
international tour next year.

Former Zimbabwe fast bowler Henry
Olonga told us news of Pakistan's reluctance to play a depleted squad was
disappointing for Zimbabwe Cricket, especially for those who have seen the
country's cricket fortunes collapse in the last couple of
months.

'Sad thing is that all the youngsters have been let down by
the administrators of ZC, who have promised so much but delivered nothing. I
hope it doesn't set a dangerous precedence because other countries can start
pulling out of tours,' Olonga said.

He admitted though that
'things like this' were going to happen at some point because the ZC
administration has been acting like renegades, and he pointed a finger of
blame towards the International Cricket Council for not doing enough to
rescue cricket in Zimbabwe.

'The ICC should have been stronger
earlier, there is no doubt the game has been administered very poorly. The
collapse of cricket in the country is no ordinary occurrence, the government
has had a hand in it because they stepped in and set up an interim committee
run by Peter Chingoka, the man who is behind most of the controversies,' he
said.

He added that it's 'like fighting fire with fire' and cricket
will die in the blaze.

Award All Workers Inflation-Adjusted Salaries, Says PSA

The Herald
(Harare)

April 20, 2006Posted to the web April 20,
2006

Harare

ALL workers should be given inflation-adjusted
salaries to survive hyperinflation, the Public Service Association (PSA) has
said.

The association said although the issue of better wages was before
the Tripartite Negotiating Forum, the resumption of talks should be
considered as a matter of urgency. In an interview, PSA executive secretary
Mr Emmanuel Tichareva said salary increases that were awarded to civil
servants in January this year have since been eroded by inflation, which now
stands at 913 percent. He added that the cost of health care was had also
gone beyond the reach of many despite it being a basic human right. "We call
upon employers to review the conditions of service for all Government
employees and other workers in the country," he said.

"It is our duty
to remain loyal and steadfast to our motherland and should remain resolute
in our march against unfair labour practices in our beloved country," he
said. He said the biggest puzzle is: where are the underpaid civil servants
going to get school fees for their children next term since the fees far
outweigh their earnings? Government recentl y met business and labour
representatives in a bid to resolve the impasse over salaries between the
TNF social partners.

Business and labour had delayed the resumption of
the TNF, a strategic framework for addressing social and economic problems,
following a stalemate over the adjustment of salaries to be above the
Poverty Datum Line (PDL). The last TNF meeting was held in January this year
and labour called for a review of monthly salaries from $2 million to about
$28 million, in line with the PDL. However, the PDL has since risen to $35
million after inflation surged to 913 percent and prices of basic
commodities continued to soar against the stagnant salary earnings.
Employers are yet to adjust workers' salaries although some of them were
declaring huge profits running into billions of dollars.

Mugabe's comments hit platinum stocks

Business Report

April 20,
2006

By Janice Kew

Harare - Shares of Impala Platinum (Implats)
and Anglo Platinum (Angloplat) fell yesterday after Zimbabwe's President
Robert Mugabe said he backed a plan to take 51 percent stakes in mines owned
by foreign companies.

Implats' Zimbabwe Platinum Mines unit, which owns a mine in
Zimbabwe and most of the country's known reserves, said last month that the
state might take a 51 percent stake in the nation's platinum projects,
citing a government proposal.

Angloplat also plans to dig a
mine there.

Mugabe told a rally in Harare on Tuesday that he backed the
plan, according to Reuters.

"Mugabe's comments are definitely hitting
the platinum stocks and probably more so than the rand," said Mark Kalil of
Andisa Securities.

The rand climbed to a three-month high against the
dollar yesterday, breaking through R6 to reach R5.949. - Bloomberg

Democracy Mugabe style

Khaleej Times Online Editorial

20
April 2006

PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe is not your
usual, run-of-the-mill politician. He has always been unorthodox in his
approach to politics and democracy, for ever courting controversy with his
unconventional views, policies and actions.

Who could forget
how he, as part of his 'beautification' drive, recently demolished tens of
thousands of homes in the poor suburbs of Harare? No wonder he is thoroughly
despised in the West even as the rest of Africa views him with increasing
alarm.

This week, addressing the 26th anniversary celebrations of the
country's independence, Mugabe warned opposition parties of dire
consequences if they used street protests and strikes to come to power. The
president thundered: "I am warning them from playing with fire - they should
stop it." Responding to the threat by opposition leader, Morgan Tsvangirai,
that he would mobilise people to push the government out of power, the
Zimbabwe president promised the wrath of the state machinery.

While
as the leader of Zimbabwe, Mugabe has every right to maintain peace and
order in the country, he cannot prevent opposition parties from doing what
is their democratic right: to protest, criticise and strike - if necessary -
to draw people's attention to government failures. After all, that is what
the opposition is supposed to do in a democracy. If the political parties in
Zimbabwe are taking to streets to make their point, the government has no
option but allow it to do so. As long as such protests and demonstrations
remain peaceful, the government cannot and mustn't interfere with them, if
Mugabe genuinely believes that Zimbabwe is a democratic country. As someone
who loves to chastise the West for its 'double standards' from time to time,
it's time for Mugabe to demonstrate his own commitment to genuine
democracy.

Land invaders to leave prime game park

Over 750
Zimbabwean families that invaded the Gonarezhou National Park, an important
component of the tri-nation Trans-Limpopo peace park initiative, will
finally vacate the intensive conservation zone, a government newspaper has
reported.

According to The Herald, the families agreed to move
following an agreement on relocation with provincial government
officials.

The paper, which did not give details of the agreement,
added that the families had for long resisted eviction efforts by the
government's Department of National Parks and Wildlife. They
reportedly contented that the game park was part of their ancestral lands,
from which they were unfairly evicted by the colonial regime.

The tri-nation frontier park will link South Africa's Kruger National Park,
Gaza National Park in Mozambique and the Gonarezhou in Zimbabwe. But the
invasion of Gonarezhou has slowed the project down, with the government
dithering on when the invaders would be ordered to leave.

The
DPNW has always insisted on the removal of the invaders to make way for the
development of the park, but the government has consistently refused to act
firmly against them because they are all supporters of President Mugabe's
ruling ZANU PF party.

The Herald quoted the governor of the
south-eastern province of Masvingo as saying the invading families would
leave by the end of August. The presence of human populations in the game
sanctuary led to a sharp increase in indiscriminate poaching in which all
sorts of weapons- ranging from crude wire snares to automatic rifles - were
used to kill game.

Because of the invasion of the game sanctuary,
the lauch of the Trans-Limpopo frontier park has been delayed several times.
While Mozambique and South Africa have proceeded with the opening of an
elephant corridor from Kruger into Mozambique's Gaza Park, Zimbabwe may
still be a long way from joining because of the dilapidated state of
Gonarezhou.

The invaders are also reported to have destroyed the
perimeter fence, raising the cost of rehablitation beyond the financial
capabilities of the Zimbabwe governmnet.

On the back of the hugely successful
Charity International EcoChallenge (Hippo Pools) and the Africa Triathlon
Championships (Troutbeck, Nyanga), the Zone 6 International Judo Chmpionships
were hosted by Zimbabwe over Easter Saturday here in Harare. Six countries
fought it out for the medal honours and for the first time in ten years, we were
able to field a full team! Comprising members from the police support unit, high
school young men and a few of our full-time national coaches, they gave their
all and more against the "big guns" from South Africa, Zambia, Angola,
Mozambique and Botswana. For most, it was their first time to step onto an
international mat - but despite the obvious stress that this causes, they
squared their shoulders, lifted their heads and looked their opponents in the
eye as they put it all on the line.

Their hunger for this experience left
me humbled again and again. We have watched most of these men struggle
continuously to get enough money to pay for transport to get to training and to
just eat at least one decent meal a day ... for just over a year they have
committed to the fitness tests, the training the regular small competitions and
national rankings.

Here they were, no excuses, no
insecurities, no delusions, simply desperately wanting to pit themselves against
as many opponents as possible to test their limits and discover their personal
bests. As a referee, I had the unpleasant experience of awarding the fight to
the other side with two of our team members in a matter of seconds into the 5
minute fight ... they had been thrown for a "knock - out"!! My heart sank for
them, but they got straight back up, bowed to the winner and walked across to
shake his hand and thank him for the fight!! I remember someone once said "The
measure of a man is not where he stands in times of victory and comfort, but how
he conducts himself in times of defeat and hardship." This also goes for the
very small band of organisers and coaches who dug deep into their own pockets,
time and personal lives to bring our squad this far, often overcoming seemingly
hopeless situations to do it.

In all we won four silver and four
bronze medals ... but most importantly, as athletes, officials and supporters
from all the countries stood for our National Anthem at the opening ceremony,
our whole Zimbabwe team stood side-by-side and lifted their voices as they sang
the words together. My son was one of them. Words fall short of describing his
experience over this last year training, competing, laughing, winning some,
losing some, staying in camp, fighting whilst the Zim supporters and fellow
fighters went beserk cheering him on flying the flag and drumming out Shona war
cries .... Sitting opposite all this I caught a glimpse of the future. No
colour, no race issues. Only a deep respect and friendship for having struggled
together, being there for each other through good and bad times and finally, for
the opportunity to stand as one in the pursuit of personal and national
excellence.

Thank God for sport. Thank God for
bringing these athletes to the arena where each is able to watch as the other
dares to better himself. Stripped of everything save the man himself, his
essence and his being exposed for all to see as he steps forward to reveal his
true self. In doing so, we are all too aware of the common potential, principles
and fears that we all share. Supported, uplifted and unconditionally accepted,
the whole becomes stronger through the sum of all the individual parts. The
community stronger through the individual investment we make on each other and
ourselves.

I salute all who strive against the
greatest of odds to continue to attract, encourage and ensure that Zimbabweans
of all ages, backgrounds, potentialities and abilities are able to reveal
themselves to themselves and in doing so, contibute towards and be a part of the
building of a brother or sisterhood, a team, a community, a nation. No matter
how small, how spontaneous or how relatively insignificant it may seem, if you
have the power, a few resources and simply the passion to bring more than one
person together through sport, through group participation in exercise, through
the freedom of movement towards a common goal .... do it. For you, for them, for
us, for the future. Mum and Dad ... this one's for you! Well done for Saturday
and for your life-time work in building hopes, dreams and people in Zim
through judo. For all of us ... let the games begin!

Zimbabwe says to revive economy, defiant on
policies

Zimbabwe on Wednesday launched a new drive to revive its ailing economy,
saying it would do away with past obstacles to growth, but vowed to press on
with policies that have repelled key donors.

The southern African
state is in the throes of a deepening economic crisis that has been worsened
by the withdrawal of international support mainly over Harare's forcible
redistribution of white-owned commercial farms among blacks.

The meltdown has been revealed in chronic shortages of food, foreign
exchange and fuel, surging unemployment and the world's highest rate of
inflation at 913,6%.

Critics say political interference,
including failure to prosecute ruling party supporters implicated in
disruptions to agriculture linked to the land reforms, have undermined
efforts to reverse the crisis.

"Previously we have been very good
at crafting turnaround programmes that have fallen short at the
implementation stage. This time round the programmes we have got are
action-oriented," central bank Governor Gideon Gono told a news briefing
also addressed by government ministers and business leaders.

"We also have commitment to do away with the bureaucracy that has stifled
(us) before. Where the issue is delivery versus bureaucracy, bureaucracy
must give way."

Economic Development Minister Rugare Gumpo said the
drive was aimed at "restoring the positive image of the country" by, among
others, seeking to boost investor confidence and cut government debt. The
plan will be overseen by a council headed by President Robert
Mugabe.

But Gumbo also struck a defiant note over Zimbabwe's
strained relations with the international community, saying: "We are not
apologetic about what we are doing in Zimbabwe."

Mugabe has
clashed with the West not only over his controversial land reforms, but also
over charges that his ruling ZANU-PF party has rigged key elections since
2000 and violated human rights. The veteran leader, in power since
independence from Britain in 1980, denies the charges.

In a move
likely to further rattle investors, Mugabe this week backed government plans
to assume 51% control of all foreign-owned mines.

But an optimistic
Mugabe told supporters at a rally on Tuesday to commemorate 26 years of
independence that the country was on course for recovery and would register
positive economic growth for the first time in 8 years.

Gono
said on Wednesday the revival initiative would also trigger inflows of
$2,5-billion "either in cash or in the form of investments" within the next
90-days.

But analysts have been sceptical about imbabwe's prospects
and say the economy - which has shrunk by 40% since 1999 - is likely to see
another contraction in 2006.

Yvonne Mahlunge on BTH- The asylum ruling in the UK

20 April
2006.

Zimbabwean activist and immigration lawyer Yvonne Mahlunge is the
guest on Behind The Headlines. Lance Guma interviews her on the recent
asylum ruling on the fate of failed Zimbabwean asylum seekers by the UK
Court of Appeal. With so much confusion surrounding the implications of that
ruling, the programme explores all the possible angles and what they mean
for Zimbabweans in the UK.Yvonne Mahlunge

NEXT WEEK- Blessing
Chebundo (MP) on BTH- Why he left the pro-senate MDC.27 April
2006.

Don't miss Behind The Headlines next Thursday as Lance Guma speaks
to the MDC's Kwekwe Member of Parliament Blessing Chebundo. Why did he
resign from the faction led by Arthur Mutambara to rejoin Morgan Tsvangirai
and his camp? Chebundo gives an explosive recounting of events that led to
his departure and how some of his colleagues gave him a verbal lashing for
defecting. It's one not to miss.Blessing Chebundo

SW
Radio Africa is Zimbabwe's only independent radio station broadcasting from
the United Kingdom. The station is staffed by exiled Zimbabwean journalists
who because of harsh media laws cannot broadcast from home.

Full
broadcast on Shortwave-3230 KHZ between 6-8pm ( British Summer time) and 24
hours on the internet at www.swradioafrica.com.

Fuel prices going down

THE PRICES of fuel at most city service stations
countrywide have been going down in recent days, a survey by The Daily
Mirror has established.

The development comes at a time trends on the
international market show prices going up due to the current stand off
between the USA and Iran over the latter's nuclear development
programme.Diesel can now be bought both at service stations and on the
parallel market at about $190 000 a litre, while petrol is $10 000 more
expensive at $200 000.This has been a downward change from about a
fortnight ago, when fuel sold at anything above $220 000 a litre, both on
the parallel market and at service stations.Besides lowering the fuel
prices, many service stations have also put up boards and notices
advertising 'special offers' for the commodity to lure customers.Some of
the signs that could be seen at service stations in Harare's central
business district (CBD) read 'diesel and petrol available', or 'fuel on
special offer' with motorists filling up their tanks without having to
queue.The availability of fuel at most service stations countrywide has
been a cause for relief, as the commodity had in recent years become more
scarce that only a few stations sold it.Fuel was reportedly abundant in
Masvingo and Bulawayo, where it was said to be selling below $200 000, while
in Bindura diesel sold at $210 000 a litre.Some motorists, however, said
fuel was not so readily available in Bindura as in Harare and Bulawayo, and
efforts to get an official comment on the variegated fuel supply trend were
fruitless.A Mufakose-based fuel vendor, who requested anonymity, said demand
for fuel had declined with price increases, forcing fuel dealers to revise
the price downward."Before we started selling the fuel at over $200 000,
it was around $150 000 a litre."That figure was not lucrative for
service stations, so they were not importing much of the commodity, causing
high demand for fuel, compared to the number of suppliers on the
market."But the $200 000 per litre price was lucrative so all service
stations began selling it, but motorists could not afford it, causing us to
review the prices downwards," said the vendor.Officially the pump prices
for diesel and petrol are $22 000 and $23 000 a litre respectively pending a
review by the National Oil Company of Zimbabwe.Zimbabwe National Chamber of
Commerce (ZNCC) president Luxon Zembe said the trends were normal and
predicted that fuel prices would continue to go down before stabilising as
long as market forces were left to determine demand and supply. "Fuel is in
abundance because government has allowed individuals to bring in the
product, so it becomes more available and the price goes down."This is
the basic economic theory of demand and supply and it is a good lesson that
we need to remove price controls. "Though not officially communicated this
is what is happening and we may see the prices continuing to go down despite
international trends, to as low a level as makes business sense,' Zembe
said.The normalisation of fuel supplies has seen some stability and sanity
creeping back into the transport sector.Both commuter omnibus and
long-distance transport operators have continued charging stable fares,
which recently were not uniform and rose at short intervals.Long
distance bus fares were largely unchanged going into the Easter break,
although a few unscrupulous transporters temporarily hiked them taking
advantage of the influx of commuters during the period.City transport
blues have, of late, also eased up.Efforts to seek comment from the Noczim
over the trends on the fuel market were in vain as calls to their offices
went unanswered.According to international reports, petroleum prices rose
above US$70 a barrel on Easter Monday and showed indications of rising to
new record prices on the back of tensions over Iran's nuclear standoff with
the US.Prices of the commodity opened the year at around US$55 a barrel in
the first week of January.

African jewel turns to dust

With the reputation of being the
fastest shrinking economy in the world, there can be little for the people
of Zimbabwe to celebrate as that country goes into its 27th year of
independence.

When reigning president Robert Mugabe took over the
country, Zimbabwe had the potential of being the shining example under the
African firmament.

It was well endowed with natural resources,
plenty of fertile agricultural land - although, as in much of Africa, water
is a problem - and an industrious population with a generally good standard
of education.

Alas, it was never to fulfil that potential. Slowly
but surely Mugabe allowed his wonderful country to haemorrhage through
corruption, poor government, political nepotism and disastrous economic
policies.

At the same time, Mugabe himself started losing touch
with reality as his megalomania grew to the extent that he has alienated his
important friends in the West who have washed their hands of his many
problems, allowing his country to crumble into its current socio-economic
crisis.

What was once the breadbasket of Africa has become a
country of food shortages brought about largely through the farm land grabs
under the guise of Mad Mug's land redistribution policy, during which time
the elite grabbed the best properties with little idea of how to farm
them.

As investment dried up as a result of Mugabe's threats to at
least partially nationalise foreign-owned industry and mines, so too did
foreign exchange. Today Zimbabwe is unable to pay for its imports of fuel,
medical supplies, machinery and other goods, driving inflation to around
900%.

From a jewel in the African crown, Zimbabwe today is a sad
litany of failure, brought to its knees by an 82-year-old man gone mad on
his own perceived importance, grudgingly supported by his neighbours,
including President Mbeki.

Time is running out for the
11-million Zimbab-weans who are dying through Aids and its attendant
diseases, along with starvation and a general hopelessness. It can only get
worse while Mugabe is still around.

Sterilising machine remains unrepaired

April 20, 2006,

By ANDnetwork .com

Mpilo Central Hospital in Zimbabwe is operating
without a sterilising machine, putting the lives of patients undergoing
surgery at risk because surgical equipment is being cleaned using an
ineffective boiling process.

A source at the hospital said doctors
feared patients could be in danger of contracting infections or dying
because surgical tools were not properly sterilised. The hospital's
autoclave sterilising machine broke down six months ago. "It is
very difficult for one to operate on a patient with a clear conscience when
you are aware that the tools you are using are not properly
sterilised. "I do not regard it as ethical to operate on a patient
when you know that their lives could be at risk because tools are not
sterilised," said the source. He said the autoclave sterilisation
process entails tools being steamed under pressure over a stipulated period
and temperature to ensure that all germs are killed. "When the
autoclave sterilisation process is used, it is unlikely that surgical tools
remain contaminated. The tools are heated in extreme and intense
temperatures over a time measure that is controlled according to recommended
specifications. "Boiling on the other hand only heats the tools to a
maximum of 100 degrees only, even if you boil the tools for over three
hours, the maximum temperature remains the same and that temperature is not
effective in removing all the impurities," he said. He said that
the responsible authorities should act to have the sterilising machine
repaired. Mpilo Medical Superintendent, Dr Lindiwe Mlilo, could not be
reached for comment yesterday as she was said to be in Harare for a
consultative meeting.

Africa And Security Council Seat

This Day
(Lagos)

EDITORIALApril 19, 2006Posted to the web April 20,
2006

Lagos

In a characteristic manner, Africa is unable to produce
a compromise candidate(s) for the proposed expanded permanent membership of
the United Nations Security Council, five months to the deadline. If this
opportunity is frittered away, Black Africans will remain the only race
without representation in the most powerful organ of the United Nations,
with the attendant negative implications.

Since the world body was
established six decades ago, it has served as a widely accepted platform for
international relations, diplomacy and arbitration. Specifically, the
security council that takes final decisions on war and related matters has
become a forum where awesome military credentials are used as weapons for
negotiations and supremacy. Also, the veto power held by its five permanent
members - US, China, France, Britain and Russia - confers on them rare
privileges whose misuse can have serious global consequences. Over the
years, this status quo has provided the basis for apprehension, inferiority
and agitation among the non-veto members of the organisation.

The
current reforms at the UN are aimed at correcting that imbalance to foster a
better sense of belonging in the world community. The cold war era promoted
the polarisation of nations along ideological lines, which in turn hampered
global peace, trust, and integration. In the new world, there is the need
for a repositioned UN to move closer to racial equality.

That is why the
most backward part of the planet - Africa - must not be sidelined as a new
thinking sweeps through the UN. From centuries of slavery, through direct
colonialism, and now to economic imperialism, Africa has remained the butt
of all other races of the world.

It is sad that now that an occasion has
presented itself to move the continent up in the global family, Africa is
once again in contention with itself for the one or two security council
slots. It is unfortunate that the seven aspiring countries - Nigeria, South
Africa, Egypt, Kenya, Senegal, Libya and Gambia - do not seem to appreciate
the gravity of the situation. Majority of the veto holders prefer the
existing structure and composition of the influential organ. The failure of
African nations to forge a common front would only justify the alibi for
their position that the elite club of veto-wielders should not be
expanded.

This point has been well made by Nigeria's minister of foreign
affairs, Chief Olu Adeniji. Says he: "The quest (for a candidate) has hit a
brickwall. The battle is now between aspirants to that seat and members not
willing to admit new entrants...And for the five permanent members, the
disagreement among the contenders is sweet music."

If this discordant
tune is received as symphony by advanced nations, it will, no doubt, have a
cacophonous fall-out in Africa whose underdog rating has continued to deny
it the best on offer in a world that is often unkind to the feeble. The
African Union (AU) should urgently put its acts together and prove that it
is united, focused and undaunted in the pursuit of its interests.

At
the risk of appearing immodest, we reiterate our stand on Africa's selection
for the UN slot. Nigeria is eminently qualified to clinch it, against the
background of its unstinted involvement in peace-keeping operations around
the globe. It has committed more human, financial and material resources to
peace efforts in the continent and outside it than any other African
country. Furthermore, apart from its predominant population, it also
possesses the potential to be the strongest economy in the
continent.

Whichever way it turns out, Africa must show that it has
come of age, and that it is prepared to be realistic in its choice of which
of its countries assumes the critical responsibilities at the world's centre
stage.

International Community ignoring China's destructive role in Africa

By Tererai Karimakwenda 20 April 2006

The Chinese premier
Hu Jintao is in the United States meeting president George Bush and
influential business leaders like Bill Gates. As smiles and handshakes grace
television screens and newspapers worldwide, victims of China's abusive
tendencies at home know that their case will at least be heard during
discussions in Washington. But it is unlikely that the subject of China's
support for ruthless regimes in Africa will come up. Due to it's massive
economic growth China appears to be prepared to lend support to anyone, if
it gains them access to rich resources.

For Zimbabweans in
particular, the Chinese have become a symbol of Robert Mugabe's "Look East"
policy. Their cheap products (known as "zhing-zhongs" to Zimbos) flood the
shops as a constant reminder of the role the Chinese government has played
in the deterioration of their country.

Tim Hughes at The South
African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) has been looking at
China's growing influence in Africa. He believes the country is already a
major player on the continent, doing at least US$40 billion worth of
business annually. Construction contracts, deals in agriculture and
preferential access to Zimbabwe's markets were granted by Mugabe in exchange
for military hardware, foreign currency and protection in the United
Nations' security council. It's also generally believed that China provided
the equipment that the Mugabe regime used to jam our shortwave broadcasts to
Zimbabwe.

Hughes said China is also influencing business in Sudan
and Angola, which provide it with crude oil. The Sudanese scenario is
perhaps the most tragic. Thousands were killed in the Darfur region and
weapons from China were implicated. This Chinese role in military affairs
worries Hughes even more. He said the Chinese government has also provided
Zimbabwe with military hardware. This is contrary to its stated foreign
policy of "non-interference in internal affairs." Hughes said China's
activities are undermining government structures in Africa and its influence
is now extending beyond Zimbabwe, Angola and Sudan into the Gulf of
Guinea.

According to Hughes China has been changing international
business since the US normalised relations with the country under president
Bill Clinton. He said the flood gates then opened when Bill Gates and his
giant Microsoft compromised its principles by allowing China to restrict the
use of certain language on its internet browser. Google and Yahoo then
followed suit. Hughes said when these companies compromise themselves in
allowing China to restrict them and censure information, China will not
reform or fall in line with accepted human rights standards. He believes
these companies are so powerful they could have forced the Chinese
government to mend its ways.

Meanwhile China's relationship
with Zimbabwe is already changing. The Mugabe regime has run out of
resources to offer as the country's economy continues to deteriorate at a
rapid pace. Recent reports indicate that Chinese tourism figures have
declined drastically. Zimbabweans have no more money to spend on the
zhing-zhongs due to hyper inflation. But China continues to thrive
elsewhere, supporting military juntas around the world which are condemned
by most democratic nations.

MDC factions submit candidates for Budiriro
election

New Zimbabwe

By Lebo NkatazoLast updated: 04/20/2006 19:23:56THE two
feuding factions of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC) will submit names of their candidates for the Budiriro by-election on
Friday, offficials said.

The nomination court for the parliamentary
by-election will be taking candidates' names on Friday, and the contest is
likely to be between Zanu PF and the two MDC factions.

Nelson
Chamisa, the spokesman for a faction led by the MDC's founder leader, Morgan
Tsvangirai, said Wednesday that they would be fielding Emmanuel Chisvuure as
their candidate.

Chisvuure is a former information and publicity youth
secretary in Budiriro. Chamisa rejects suggestions that the confusion within
the party could split the vote and favour the Zanu PF candidate.

He
said: "There is no issue of splitting the vote as there is one MDC. Our
supporters also know that there is only one MDC."

The other faction
of the party led by former NASA rocket scientist Professor Arthur Mutambara
was expected to release the name of its candidate late Thursday following a
meeting of the national executive.

However, New Zimbabwe.com understands
that Gabriel Chaibva is likely to be the candidate.

The two MDC
factions are smarting from defeats in the Chegutu mayoral polls and ward
elections in Bulawayo at the hands of Zanu PF.